PRESS DIGEST -China - Aug 21

SHANGHAI, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Chinese newspapers available in Beijing and Shanghai carried the following stories on Thursday. Reuters has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

CHINA SECURITIES

- State-owned energy, electricity and transportation companies from three provinces in northeast China will launch a mixed ownership pilot program in the near future, sources told the official newspaper.

SHANGHAI DAILY

- China has begun the trial of the former director of Beijing Zoo over corruption charges after investigators found close to 6 million yuan ($977,278) in cash at his home last year.

CHINA DAILY

- The price of shark fin, one of China’s most expensive delicacies, has dropped from 2,800 yuan per kg to 1,200 yuan in some seafood markets in the southern city of Guangzhou, following a crackdown against official extravagance and luxury.

- Chinese airplane pilots will have to refine heavy accents by 2016 or miss out on jobs, according to the country’s civil aviation authority. The Civil Aviation Administration of China is trying to avoid communication lapses between pilots and controllers.

SHANGHAI SECURITIES NEWS

- China’s railway development fund is looking at ways to attract a wider base of investors, including setting up preferential shares.